Austin FC vs St. Louis City SC score: 3 takeaways as Verde thrive in MLS win

Vazquez makes long-awaited return

Though he only played five minutes, it was a big moment for Vazquez just to be on the field. Entering the match in the 89th minute, he returned to action for the first time since his knee injury July 8 in a U.S. Open quarterfinal match at San Jose. “I’m just grateful being able to be back with the team,” said Vazquez, who is arguably the club’s biggest signing in its short history. “Being able to step back onto the field and hearing the stadium go crazy, it was an amazing feeling.” Vazquez returned about as quickly from an ACL tear as possible, though he said there were several tough moments in rehab. “A lot of times I just had to stay positive and stay disciplined with my mindset,” he said. “Some days, it didn’t just feel like you were progressing much. … It was a long process. … I’ve been visualizing this moment for a long time and just grinding through every day to get here.”

Austin FC is finally getting (mostly) healthy

The return of Vazquez, Wolff and Pereira gives Austin FC a lot of potential — assuming no other key players get injured. (Winger Jayden Nelson didn’t play Sunday after re-aggravating a calf injury in warmups.) Though all three are probably at least two more weeks from playing more than 30 minutes, they give the Verde & Black significant depth all over the field. “You can see what it means to the locker room to have these guys back,” Stuver said.

Though no goals, Austin FC had a great first half

From an attacking standpoint, the first half was Austin FC’s best of the season in terms of quality of play. Led by Ramírez, Uzuni, Joseph Rosales, Facundo Torres and Jon Gallagher, the Verde & Black were aggressive, entertaining and easily could have had three goals with better luck or finishing. St. Louis goalie Roman Bürki made some highlight-reel saves to keep the visitors in the match. If Austin FC can consistently play like it did the first 45 minutes, it's going to produce a lot of results.

Bottom line

Austin FC has four matches left before the World Cup break, three of which, including another contest against St. Louis, are against teams from the bottom four of the Western Conference. Road games at Minnesota and San Diego won’t be easy, with the latter coming only on two days rest. But if Austin FC can manage at least five points from these four contests, it will set itself up to make a move up the standings with a strong second half of the year.